NEW DELHI: Pakistan skipper Babar Azam decided to bat first against Afghanistan after winning the toss in Chennai on Monday in their crucial ICC World Cup match.
The 1992 champions made one change to their playing eleven, replacing the fever-stricken Mohammad Nawaz with Shadab Khan. Meanwhile, Afghanistan decided to go in with an extra spin option in the form of Noor Ahmad, who came in for fast bowler Fazalhaq Farooqi.
"We wanted to bat first, but the toss is not in your hand...We played a series against them in Sri Lanka and we wanted more spinning options. We want to restrict them to 250 or less," said Afghanistan skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi.
Pakistan skipper Babar reckoned the pitch may spin in the afternoon and aid fast bowlers in the evening.
"The pitch looks very dry and might spin...We will have to give our 100% in every match and step up. That's what I want from my players. The pitch might help the pacers under lights," said Babar.
(AI image)
PLAYING XIs
Pakistan: Abdullah Shafique, Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam (c), Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, Shaheen Afridi, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Naveen-ul-Haq, Noor Ahmad
